Rajoy to answer Mas’s referendum letter after summer

Barcelona (ACN).- The Spanish President, Mariano Rajoy, called the Catalan President, Artur Mas, in order to acknowledge that he had recieved the letter which stated the willingness of the Catalan people to hold a referendum on independence. According to the Presidency Minister, Francesc Homs, Rajoy said to Mas that he would answer the petition after the summer break. Homs added that the conversation between the two leaders was very short, lasting no more than two minutes.

Homs explained that the Catalan government is expecting Madrid’s answer to know “whether there is is a possibility for dialogue” or not. In an interview with the Catalan Public Television station (TV3), the Presidency Minister said the letter didn’t express the wishes of Mas, but of a Catalonia.

In the letter, Artur Mas stated that there is a “need to launch talks and a negotiation process to allow, in an agreed way, the Catalan people to vote” on the issue of independence. Mas added that the vote should be held as soon as possible and within the “legal frameworks” decided by both Madrid and Barcelona.

The Catalan President stressed that in Catalonia there is “a wide citizen and parliamentary support” for the referendum, and “willingness to talk and negotiate”. Mas also reminded Rajoy that other European countries, notably the United Kingdom, have allowed similar referendums to go ahead, finding ways to “democratically and legally solve” all the challenges.

“Is Mr Rajoy not happy to discuss this issue? How can we consider the leader as being democratic when he doesn’t agree to talk, when all that is being asked is to debate the possibility to vote in a referendum?”, Francesc Homs noted. The Presidency Minister asked Rajoy to live “up to his responsibilities”. “We need to explain to the Spanish government that if it considers itself as being democratic, it should offer a democratic solution to a democratic petition”, he added.

Homs recognised he doesn’t expect Rajoy to authorise a referendum in Catalonia, unlike UK Prime Minister David Cameron who did, with regards to Scotland, but said the issue will have to be analysed once they receive an answer.